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Set Sail! The Holy Crusade Begins!
Previous Chapter As they strolled along the lit streets of Engeland at night, Pandora noted how solemn it was, walking with Sadow. She was thankful to have escaped the clutches of Eve for a moment to catch a breather. Still, the autumn air was clear here. Breezes were warm yet cool. Red and brown leaves glided gracefully across the air and onto the stone pavement. She glanced over at Sadow, who was examining a peculiar trinket. It looked like a dark chain with a red, sharply cut stone attached to it. She smiled "Pretty necklace. Where'd you get it?" He looked a bit startled from the sudden break of silence "Oh, err... It was a gift." She raised a brow curiously "From who?" He stared back at the stone intently "My brother..." Pandora grimaced. That raised another topic she had been meaning to ask Sadow. "Why did you lie?" He looked puzzled at this, unaware of what she was talking about "What?" She added "When we were nearing Olympus, you said your family were all dead. But you have a brother. Why did it shame you to talk about him?" Sadow looked a little distant. She didn't expect him to answer. To her surprise, however, he did. "Before we arrived, he was dead to me. He killed my family, and took away my eyesight. Though I'd trade my very soul for the chance to see them again. Instead, I was foolish and traded it for the chance to take out my anger on him. But now... I don't know what I want." She could see the despair in his dark, dead eyes and offered her insight, speaking in a runic tongue Sadow didn't understand. As she finished, she translated "Hatred is like a poison. It eats away at our hearts, our lives. And when it is done, you have dug your own grave as well as the others." thumb|300px|right|Opening II She turned to Sadow while smiling, her finger in the air as she finished "Do what makes you happy, but not out of hatred." Sadow took her words to heart and nodded, smiling "Thank you, Pandora." They continued their walk as a silhouetted figure was sitting atop a house, examining them. A wide grin appeared on it's face as it leaned forward, the porch lamp illuminating his face to be that of Loki. "So, they survived their trek, eh?" He chuckled to himself and stood, strolling over to the other side of the roof and watching the docks as hundreds of ships were docked, prepared to leave the next day. "The Second Holy Crusade since the rule of King Uther Pendragon, a millenia ago. Be prepared, Pandora. For this will not only test the mettle of your friends, but of you as well..." The Righteous, The Destitute, and The Judgement "Get your hands off me!" Cargo loaders were struggling to get Metharme onto one of the ships. The head of the workers had his arms folded and was watching sternly as his bulky men wrestled with the slim Android. "We're sorry, miss, but being an Android, you are considered property and must be treated as such. Now please stop struggling and get into the cargo hold." Metharme yelled "I saw other Androids get to be loaded with the other soldiers! Why do I have to go into that dingy dungeon?!" He sternly replied "Because they are combat Androids." Metharme resisted further "I can fight! Make me one of them then!" He shook his head "I'm sorry, ma'am, but we just don't have the clearance to do so." Baldr was watching all of this from the sidelines, called in because he will have to share space with her. Metharme kicked about as she was pulled by the arms "Let go of me! Baldr! Help!" He groaned in aggravation "Just get into the hold, Metharme. I'll be there too so you will have company." Metharme yelled "Traitooor!" as she was dragged into the hold. He turned to the foreman and apologized "Sorry for my companions behaviour. She is a little... damaged." Metharme yelled from within the ship "I am not damaged!" He sighed "I pray for a short trip." Creed walked up the wooden steps on the armoured vessel called the Righteous. It was King Alexander's personal flagship and was to be the ship he would be carried on. His ponytail swayed from the autumn winds. The King sat on a makeshift throne, made of wood with padding to ease the discomfort of a wooden chair. He smiled at the sight of Creed and greeted warmheartedly "Welcome to the Righteous, Captain! I assume your Division is ready for battle?" Creed nodded while smiling assuredly "Ready as we'll ever be, my Liege." The King nodded "Excellent. And I hear you brought food for the voyage?" Creed nodded yet again, confirmingly "Yes, sir. Fruits and veggies, mostly, but I hear Wilson bought some steaks to grill." The King laughed "Excellent! Most excellent! A leisure voyage before battle, how delightful. Oh, and..." he ushered Creed to him to whisper "I've been informed of your meeting Miss Charlotte. Seems you take quite a fancy for her, eh?" Creed blushed. This was the King, speaking to him like a beer-buddy. Creed stammered nervously "Err... I suppose so, sir. Who informed you of this, exactly?" The King waved it off with his armoured hand "Irrelevant. But fear not, your good King has made arrangements for your market flower to accompany us on this very ship. Just don't get too out of control with your courting, okay?" He winked and elbowed Creed, who was standing completely speechless, in the side while smiling. He waved his hand again "You are dismissed." Creed turned and was off. "Well... that was certainly awkward." "A crew carrier ship?" Sadow was standing in front of the Destitute, a ridiculously wide carrier ship housing soldiers, mostly combat Androids. The dock master nodded "Indeed. By order of Lord Akihiro." Sadow's brows faltered. So this was his brother's doing. "Well regardless... '''Lord' Akihiro has a nice ring to it, I suppose."'' He nodded "Alright, thank you for informing me." The dock master nodded a farewell and took off to redirect a group of confused sailors. Things were a little hectic around the docks since soldiers needed directions to which ship they needed to be on, workers needed extra assistance carrying heavy supplies, and family members are still giving last-minute farewells. Sadow muttered to himself "Heh... Comparable to the chaos of war itself, I'd take the chaos of war preparation anyday." Laced around his neck was the dark chain with the red stone attached to it. His mind was almost hypnotically wrapped around it. His only sufficable explanation for it was that it was a symbol of Akihiro's apology. "I'll... hang onto it for a while..." He clutched the stone tightly in his hand. It was sharp, irritable. But smooth. Pandora sighed "Still no sign of Sadow... And from what Eve told me, we'll be stationed on the same ship. My father would kill me if he knew I got dragged into this war. But... was this all worth it? I may die in this war and for what? Never seeing Sadow again..." She felt a hand gently pat her on the head. Could it be..." She looked up to find a figure with white hair, face silhouetted by the sun. She gave a smile of hope only to find that it was not Sadow himself, but his brother, who smiled back genuinely "You looked quite miserable all alone over here. I thought I'd check up on you." Ares stood behind him loomingly, face silhouetted by his long, dark hair. Except for that single, red eye, which glowed through it rather eerily. Akihiro turned to him "Go find Eve and tell her we'll be leaving soon so she'd best have her things packed." He gruffed and nodded and turned to leave as Akihiro sat on a barrel next to her, reaching into his white coat and pulling out a juice box with a plastic straw "Want one? We got an entire box back at the ship." The day was hot and she was undeniably thirsty so she accepted "Thanks." He nodded and pulled out another for himself "Don't mention it. So tell me, why are you accompanying us? Are you in debt to the crown?" She sipped it and shook her head "I'm following Sadow." Akihiro sipped his own juice. He looked like a child, simple and to-the-point but in a cheery, sweet way. His eyes shown genuine curiosity. It was like speaking to a boy her age but in a much older body. "I see. I guess I shouldn't pry further than that. Don't worry, though. Sadow is in our company and since you are with him, as are you. You both will be under my protection. I promise." She smiled. This man wasn't bad at all. One would either be blind or a fool to call him a monster. Here he, a tactical genius of warfare and combat and a refined leader of a famous Mercenary group, was sitting on a barrel, kicking his feet like a bored child, and sipping a juice box through a plastic straw while talking to her with concern for her well-being. He wasn't a monster at all. He was like an Angel. Just like Sadow. These two brothers- No, their family in general seemed like they were blessed by God. The Pestilence and The Raven Finishing their juice, Akihiro idley dumped it into the barrel he was sitting on, uncaring of whether or not it was a garbage disposal barrel or not. He got up and stretched, popping his joints loudly "Urgh! Why must I always tire after only a moment of sitting down?" She giggled "Perhaps you're out of shape." He chuckled at this "A Yatsumaru swordsman out of shape? The madness of this place! Someone send for the Guard!" Their light-hearted humour was interrupted by the blood-curdling screams of madmen. Pandora recognized it. Her head swiveled to face the source of the wailing, only to find that her horrific prediction was true. The Berserkers. Crazed men hungry for pillaging and murder were being loaded onto a ship in cages, like wild dogs. Some even foamed from the mouth. She hid behind Akihiro at the sight of them. Her first encounter with these beasts nearly got her killed. "And these horrible people are being let loose in these lands?!" she thought to herself. Akihiro watched sternly as the last cage was being loaded. Inside was a Huangese man with pale skin, blue lips and hair, clawed nails and his neck chained to the cage's floor. He sat idley with crossed-legs, watching them. At the sight of Akihiro and Pandora, he grinned menacingly. It sent a shiver down her spine. When he was out of sight, Akihiro murmured "Nemesis... Leader of the Berserker faction." Pandora mumbled fearfully "That was... their leader...?" Akihiro nodded, almost grimfully. "They have been stationed on the carrier ship, Pestilence, for good reason. I want them nowhere near anyone else. The crew of that ship are trained sailors with nothing to lose if those maniacs decide to break free. God help their souls..." Pandora was shaken by fear. Why anyone would want to be around those homicidal psychopaths she had no idea. She'd pray they don't get loose. Shade was eyeing a crate of white-tipped missiles, the top about to be attached to keep them from dumping out. "What are those?" he asked Cane, who was directing some riflemen to their ship. "You'll see. A special surprise for the Kushans." Shade watched the top be nailed onto it and the crate carried off by one of the dock workers, taking care not to drop it. No matter what it was, no one would risk dropping a missile. No one with sense, at any rate. He turned back to Cane "So we're stationed on the Raven then?" Cane nodded "With all the other marksmen. The King organized us based on our skillset, apparently." Shade smirked "Engeland's most refined gun specialists all packed onto one crewship. At least we get a good meal, though. Hamburgers, I heard." Cane lead him to the ship after he was sure there were no more riflemen coming who were too confused to find their way "Don't get too comfortable. We're at the head of the pack, which means when we land, it's assholes and elbows." Shade chuckled at this "And Trench holes and spit bowls, eh?" Cane nodded in agreement "Aye." They stepped up the ramp to the Raven. Shade's first sight was one he hadn't seen since he arrived. Uriel. Her face glorying at the sight of the grill at the end of the deck, wings fluttering happily. He gave a comical look of horror as Cane turned to him with a perplexed look "Eh? What is it, Kagekyo?" Uriel turned to Shade and waved her hands dramatically at the grill "Shade! Look! We're having burgers!" Shade ignored Cane and pointed to himself with his thumb, a comically angry expression worn on his face "You mean I'm having burgers! Go find your own ship!" Cane raised a brow "Who are you talking to?" She whined in return "But Shaaade~! We're going to war! I at least want to eat well! Besides, this is the first time we've seen each other since we've gotten here!" Shade muttered "And I thought it was too good to be true..." His muttering turned to a hushed whisper "Just... cover those wings with something and hide. I'll bring you food if you lay low, okay?!" She nodded and hugged him tightly in gratitude "I knew I could count on you, Shade~!" Cane, by this point, was looking as if Shade was a talking animal. "Err... I..." Shade turned to him, smiling in embarrassment "Oh, it was... just... my sister! Yes! You see, she died a few years ago and I always like to pretend I'm still talking to her to remember her by, you know?" Cane raised a brow skeptically "Oh really...?" Uriel pointed at Cane from behind Shade and asked "Who's this?" Shade muttered with clenched teeth back at her "Shutup." Cane warned "You shouldn't hang on too much to the past, Kagekyo. I'm sure she would've wanted you to move on." He nodded "Yeah, well... I'm working on it. Why don't you have Enric get this grill fired up and I'll meet you after I test out the toiletry down below." Cane nodded "You do that." At this, Shade carried Uriel down below deck and hid her in an empty barrel. Before he could put the lid on, she exclaimed "Hey-" but he quickly silenced her with the lid. He ordered "Now stay put until we arrive. I'll bring you food but keep quiet and out of sight, got it?" She replied absently "Good heavens, it's all wet in here! I smell something rancid!" Shade took that as a yes and headed back upstairs. "Oh man! Oh man! Oh man!" Eve was sprinting as fast as she could in her flip flops. "Late again! I told Ares to set my clock!" As she rounded a corner, determined to cut through and alleyway to reach the docks, she bumped into a man with a black and purple striped shirt, wearing silver necklaces of varying design, a silver crown on his blonde head, and a black coat with black rider pants. He stared down at her, his eyes shrouded by his hair "You alright, kid?" She looked up at him, rubbing her head sorely "Ow... What gives?!" He smirked. His mouth stretched to each side of his cheeks, eerily. Eve wondered to herself who this man was. He simply walked past her, not bothering to offer a helping hand. His hands were in his pockets and his necklaces swayed with each light step he took. "First you knock me down then you don't even offer to help me up?! Jerk!" Without looking at her, he forewarned "You'd better get to that boat, girl. You're late." Eve looked surprised "How do you know-" He cut her off "You will be a beacon of the apocalypse one day." His head turned and he was wearing a wide, menacing grin "Don't miss your ride, girl." At this, he rounded a corner casually as a hard wind blew, causing her hair to blow past her. She realized she was being held up and got to her feet, continuing her hard trek toward the docks. Hopefully they didn't already set sail. Onward to Battle! Into the Dragon's Maw! Bouquets of flowers representing fortune and good favour of God were flung all throughout the docks. The ships were prepared to set sail at long last. The loss of the Holy Grail would not deter them in their Holy march. Eve was smiling and kicking her feet while sitting on the dock's edge, watching the King giving a rallying speech after Father John IV. He ended "So, my people! Upon returning, be ready to cheer with booming voices that shall echo to the Heavens!" They cheered on as he stepped off the wooden platform he was standing on to address them all. He turned to Father John IV and shook his hand, the Priest smiling brightly "Godspeed, My Liege." Alexander smiled with a skeptically raised brow "What? But you're coming along as well, Father." That stopped the man dead "W-What?" Alexander nodded confirmingly "We'll need a Holy man such as yourselfto give blessings to our troops and equipment and encourage us with morale-uplifting prayer." Without giving the Priest a second to argue, the King walked past him, placing a light hand on his shoulder lightly. Father John smirked hysterically in fear of being drawn into battle and falls backward in a faint. Queen Maria waved in front of the crowd of cheering people as the ships set sail for Kusha. The boats glided across the blue dock water with fish trailing next to them, almost like they were guiding them to the battlefield. She smiled, thinking of her husband and of her daughter. "They'll be fine... They are Brittannian Royalty. And hopefully, as Father John said, God is on our side. Lord, be with them..." Preview In the next installment of My Inferno: The Brittannian army has finally set sail for the desert lands of Kusha! Along their journey, they a conveniently small island placed neatly in the middle of the Abyssmal Seas. But something is not right, and Pandora knows it. Find out what happens on their voyage in the next chapter of My Inferno! Inferno Short: Drainage Uriel shouted at Shade from within the barrel as he sipped a drink casually "I need let out of here now!" Shade looked uncaring "What now, Uriel...?" She replied hurriedly "I have to pee!" His eye lit up comically in horror "Oh lord..." Above deck, Cane was judging the marksmen as they shot targets that they let adrift at sea. He turned upon hearing a loud rumbling sound, only to see Shade carrying a large barrel across the deck, in a hurry "Er... Kagekyo? What is tha-" Shade interrupted "Stuff!" Uriel whined "I can't hold it much longerrr!" Shade tripped over a loose board and dropped the barrel, letting it roll across the deck and down into the lower levels where the cabins and restroom were. She tumbled out of the barrel dizzly but delighted to see the bathroom door. Grabbing the handle, it refused to open signifying someone was in. She heard a man inside confirm "Occupied." She banged her forehead against the wall next to the door while clutching her sides. As Shade walked down the steps to the hall, she rushed past him, repeating "Gotta pee! Gotta pee! Gotta pee!" He let her pass, fearful she might explode at any minute. She dove into the air and fluttered high, dive-bombing into the water. Cane turned to Shade "What was that?" He shrugged "A whale, I guess." After a few seconds she re-surfaced, sighing in relief "Aaaahhh..." Her smile soon faded into a frown as she spotted the marksmen aiming for her, the glass targets having shifted near her. One of them stopped "Look! A Sea-Cow!" Uriel's face looked livid and she sunk back underwater. Sneaking back aboard the ship, she shook the water still on her off and exclaimed "Sea-Cow?!" Before she could reach the man who pointed her out, Shade drew a hand over her mouth and wrestled her back into the barrel. "Shutup, will you!?" Cane hollared over "Shade! Please tell me you didn't dump whatever is in that barrel into the sea because now the water is turning yellow around our targets! If the King seas, he may protest about dumping our waste into the sea." Shade looked down at the barrel disgustedly "You didn't..." Uriel blushed within the barrel "Let's just not talk about it..."